Unsafe abortion
Unsafe abortion causes as many as 70,000 maternal deaths and countless more cases of maternal morbidity every year. In settings where abortion is legally restricted or access to safe services is limited, women with unwanted pregnancies often resort to unsafe abortions and subsequently require urgent medical attention to remove the remaining products of conception from the uterus and to treat complications such as bleeding or infection. Too many women who seek unsafe abortions do not have the knowledge and the means to avoid an unwanted pregnancy.
Postabortion care is a multi-pronged strategy to prevent deaths and injury from unsafe abortion. Both treatment of complications and provision of family planning to prevent future unwanted pregnancies are key components.
Visit our resource page for background information on unsafe abortion, country reports on the incidence of unsafe abortion and strategies to reduce unsafe abortion.
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